“Grace was born with an extra chromosome. While this means she cannot read, do math, or hold a job like you and I can, it doesn’t mean she can’t travel. Life is full of limitations. All of us must decipher between the limits we must accept and the ones we can weasel around to grasp something greater.”

“As a mother of a Down Syndrome child, my mom sought and struggled to find beneficial programs within Grace’s capabilities. While some special needs programs were out there, they were either unattainable by decade long wait lists or mostly unsuitable.”

“In foreign countries with new sights, new smells, ways of life and transportation, Grace is constantly being stretched. And she has handled it quite well! Whether is it a strange door knob or riding a camel through the Sahara Desert, Grace is being forced to think, strategize, and problem solve. Keeping her mind alert has been key in fighting her dementia and Alzheimer’s.”

“During our three weeks in Morocco, we took a tour through the stunning High Atlas Mountains and then down near the Algerian border to the Sahara Desert. Our second night was to be spent sleeping under the stars in the desert with the nomadic Bedouins. We would arrive by camel.”

“The camel ride would only be about an hour and a half and in the cool of the evening. My mom knew Grace could do it. Grace loves horses and a camel is basically a desert horse, right? But the leading Bedouin guide refused to let Grace join when he saw her. He did not want the responsibility for her.”

“We were told Grace could take the 4×4 jeep instead, but what kind of experience would that be? My mom advocated for Grace to take the camel and won out in the end. Our wonderful tour group members assisted and encouraged Grace the whole way. She was extremely proud of herself. After a long night spent in the desert, we recognized a limit and took Grace on the 4×4 for the journey back.”

“It is experiences like these that convince us that travel is more than just possible for people with disabilities. For 10 months, travel has proven to be the best facilitator to help Grace flourish.”

“I started traveling internationally when I was 18. At the most of my ailments were under control and required no medicine, but with any illness of any severity, you don’t get to pick and choose when it flairs up. I was diagnosed at a very young age with situational anxiety, generalized depression, and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). As well as allergies and an autoimmune disorder. Theoretically, I should just stay at home in a bubble but that’s really no fun.”

“The three so called “mental issues” are vicious little beasts that feed off each other. When I get anxious my OCD gets worse and I can get depressed. but being an old pro at having all of these I know how to handle them for the most part and medication does definitely help. I’m not allergic to one thing in particular. I joke that I’m allergic to life because one day I’ll be totally fine and the next day I’ll be sneezing and coughing up a lung. And then there’s my auto Immune disorder. I have vitiligo or hypo pigmentation or certain areas of my skin, i.e. I have random white patches all over my body. That doesn’t really affect me on a day to day basis but sunscreen and I have become really good friends.”

“Now If I stayed home and lived in a bubble living with all of these things would be easy but like I said, that’s no fun. So I go and do what I want which for the most part is to see the world. And the only way I can do that is by acknowledging my ailments and taking them into account. For instance, I know what medication I need and how much for each trip I go on. I know that sunscreen has to be packed even if it’s cloudy and I know antihistamines are my only way around allergies. It is in my opinion that traveling with illness or handicap can be done as long as you plan ahead and try to foresee any unknown variables.”

“Anyway, the point of writing this isn’t so much to list the challenges as to point out that I do it. Yes, it can be a bit of a nuisance, but the problems are certainly not insurmountable. There’s no way I’d let it stop me doing what I love. There are so many people with disabilities and medical conditions who are put off travelling by the thought of the extra effort involved. However, I’ve found that it doesn’t need to be a big issue. Yes, it’s going to be more of a challenge for you than for somebody who doesn’t have the condition, but it shouldn’t stop you.

“The key is not to be negative about it. Don’t think about how hard it is and get downhearted before you even begin. I’ve always found writing lists helpful. Down one side of a piece of paper I write all the potential challenges and all the things that might go wrong. Then down the other side I write the solutions. It can cover everything from losing your medication to needing to explain a problem in a foreign language. If you’ve thought about how to tackle the issues in advance, then you’re not going to be stressed if things do go wrong: you’ve got a plan. You’re then free to enjoy the experience of travelling.”

“I guess the conclusion is simply that the vast majority of challenges, medical or otherwise, are only a barrier to travel if you let them be. It can involve a little creative thinking and, of course, I realise some conditions are a lot more difficult to work with than my own. However, I don’t believe you should abandon all hope of exploring our amazing world just because life has thrown you a few challenges.”

“I’m a 20-year-old tourism student and blogger from the Netherlands. Around my 12th, we discovered in a quite heavy situation that I’m living with IBS, Irritable Bowel System, which causes my digestion to be really sensitive and living it’s own life. IBS happens out of nowhere and can get you a lot of pain and cramps. It basically marries me to bathrooms every now and then (:.”

“You have to consider everything you eat, whether your drinking water is really clean and hygiene is more important to me than to others, since my body reacts to every single thing that it tastes, processes and feels in a heavier way. While I was in Morocco, I took medicines against IBS symptoms every day, but I still got sick because of the food and hygiene that my body simply isn’t used to.”

“However, it never ever stopped me from travelling! Of course it can be a problem, but it’s up to you how you approach it. I simply thought of ways on how I was going to deal with it during my trip. No way that I’m going to let this ruin my dreams! Before leaving, I tell my travel buddy about IBS, what could happen and what to do when something happens. I look up if there are bathrooms in trains, and I translate the words ‘toilet’ and ‘bathroom’ in the language that they speak at my destination.”

“While on the road, I always carry extra medicines, toilet paper/napkins and use the bathroom whenever possible, even when I don’t feel the need to go. Just to be sure! Eating is always hard, especially when you’re in a country where they eat a lot of spicy food. My advice: just eat it and enjoy it to the fullest. Living with IBS, you’re probably going to get sick at some point anyway. So make the best of it and try all the local foods that you want. Wash your hand, use disinfecting hand gel and only drink water from bottles. Don’t let it lead your trip – it’s your body. Listen to it, be kind, act accordingly and make sure that you can cross off things on your bucket list!”